South Hampshire, Avenir
South Hampshire is the 8th most populous suburb of Avenir, England. A strictly residential area, South Hampshire maintains a working class standard and is home to a bundle of small villages, all heavily influenced by its deep central European roots. Until 1798, the current area of South Hampshire was almost entirely covered by a large mire, a small salient of the greater Redenham Hills AOB. This boggy, swamp-like expanse was strictly unfarmable barring small oak plateaus contained within its area. Because of this, South Hampshire's population never exceeded more than 5,000 — its few residents were mostly farmers of German, Dutch, or Swiss German descent, who were offered to live in South Hampshire by the then-regent Duke of Buccleugh, Louis II, sometime in the 16th century. It was so insignificant that, after 1756, South Hampshire, which had usually been considered as its own independent entity having never been invaded due to its harsh terrain, was given to Blithebeth and demoted to a dependency, acting as a precinct — the largest precinct to exist in Avenir. However, between 1798 and 1808, a now-unified Avenir under no divisions between warring dynasties saw South Hampshire as an opportunity for work (especially given how it was so close to Blithebeth, which rose to prominence in the late-18th century), and began aggressively cutting down the bog that covered South Hampshire in order to urbanise it as its own independent suburb. The few remaining agricultural lands, most notably Friedrichsland (the land of Friedrich, a farmer of German descent living in southern South Hampshire) and Emilsland retained some of their agrarian roots, as families living onsite were compensated for losses as their land was developed for housing. Its borders with Blithebeth, Kingstanding Town, and Sisefield were all determined by old roads that separated potable lands from the old bog, hence their neat curvatures. The original mire was around 92% felled by 1808 and the proclaimed suburb of South Hampshire, newly hewn, was built-up very quickly to house a growing population. The surviving 8% became a conservation area of Avenir along with the Redenham Hills, which was also rewarded conservation status in 1808 amid fears of its possible destruction. History Origins South Hampshire was originally populated by farmers, mostly of German descent, many of whom were attracted to Avenir after voyages carried out by Gael Buccleugh, Duke of Buccleugh from 1260 to 1281, to various parts of Central Europe. Settlers chose South Hampshire as its environment was comparable to that back home, and for protection provided by Buccleugh royals, who during this time had full dominion over Avenir. South Hampshire existed as an extension of Buccleugh, until the Partition of Buccleugh occurred, where it was put under Kingstanding (Blithebeth) jurisdiction. South Hampshire's vast territories were very sparsely populated. The thick mire which covered its lands was difficult to farm, and few pockets of usable land were heavily farmed anyway. Most of its modern-day lands were controlled by lords, such as the most prominent Emil and Friedrich, who controlled much of south and south-eastern South Hampshire, hence the modern day precincts of Emilsland and Friedrichsland. Alas, South Hampshire was heavily unimportant and played little role in Avenir's geopolitics. Great War of the Southern Dukedoms In 1728, the Kingstanding Duchy was given an ultimatum by the Royalists: join the pro-Duchy cause or join Blossom Hill's Unionist cause and suffer invasion. While a portion of Kingstanding known as West Kingstanding chose to join the Royalists, the bulk of the Kingstanding proper - including all of modern-day Blithebeth and Kingstanding Town - voted to join the Unionists. A swift and devastating invasion was carried out as East Kingstanding was reduced to Central Government Kingstanding. South Hampshire, while de facto part of Kingstanding, was exempt from the vote as its harsh lands were decidedly unimportant and too difficult to defend. An arbitrary border for South Hampshire was decided using Hampshire Lane in Blithebeth, which divided the lush soils of Kingstanding from the mire of South Hampshire. However, a degree of control was exerted over South Hampshire, as the Royalists claimed control over it. On August 7, 1733, South Hampshire was invaded by multiple sides from Unionist Pact South Yags, Sisefield, and Sutherland, with the campaign ending just three days later. South Hampshire later served as a troop deposit for Royalists, who used the area as an important flank route for nearby Kingstanding. Statute of the Union Despite its relative importance in the Unionist victory of the Great War of the Southern Dukedoms, South Hampshire was put under Blithebeth jurisdiction with the signing of the Statute of the Union on September 1, 1756. As Blithebeth While under Blithebeth control, South Hampshire existed as a precinct. Despite its vast size, it remained of little importance in Blithebeth geopolitics, which was thriving and developing rapidly at the time. Hampshire Road, which dictates to this day the northern border of South Hampshire, was developed in 1777. The Great Drain In 1779, with development of Hamphire Road well underway, the mayor of Avenir at the time and a few other Avenirian Lords met with farmers in South Hampshire to discuss the future of the bog. With development at its doorstep — thanks to Blithebeth's economic boon and Sisefield's urbanisation — South Hampshire was only an inevitable target, especially as space for development became limited. Eventually, an agreement was forged between farmers and city dignitaries; in exchange for full reparation for disenfranchisement and free rehousing, South Hampshire and its subsidiary farms was essentially sold to the council, who intended to cut down the old South Hampshire Mire. Dubbed the "Great Drain", the Council saw ample opportunity to use the development as bonding between former Royalist and Unionist workers, particularly those from Ambrose Hill and Blossom Hill, whose ancient enmity was only furthered by the deadliest war on Great British soil. Work was originally intended for the year 1783, heavily postponed until eventual designation on May 6, 1798, to be carried out every May through September until the mire was no more. South Hampshire officially split from Blithebeth in 1808, as work reached official completion in June of that year. By this point, 92% of the mire had been purposefully removed. Process of removal Most of the removal efforts were carried out using shovels and rudimentary early age steam-powered cultivators. The latter tools were accredited as being a direct precursor to the modern-day rototiller. However, despite their wide scale use in the Great Drain, most machines were immobile save for a rotary digit which enabled 290-degree horizontal movement and limited vertical decline. They also warranted great quantities of steam power, prolonging the process further. South Hampshire's small, lush region of Canalside became central to the efforts. Many settlements, which became permanent for workers, sprang up in the region. The canals for which it is known were originally built for the transport of resources, although they were retained in street grids and eventually expanded for industrial and social use. Existing pockets of farmland — including the much-cultivated region of Emisland — were mostly untouched although later developed as farmers relocated. Many moved to the nearby Bedfordshire town of Constable. Urbanisation In 1808, Lord Hickox of Yags remarked on South Hampshire as a "the global repository for mud sediment." South Hampshire was essentially covered in dirt, which, due to lack of cultivation, was infertile — and rock hard. Small pockets of Georgian and Tudor buildings from a previous age were dotted around these rugged lands, usually empty due to the flight of farmers from the area. With its being close to Blithebeth, most development was centred around two key areas: the canals of Canalside, which were facilitated in 1807, and South Grand Marsh, particularly the South Hampshire side of Hampshire Road, a main population centre. The first on-land train line in Avenir was built travelling from Umber West, ending in South Hampshire, in 1830; South Hampshire Station (demolished 1982), its final destination, was the largest station in Avenir until 1881, when a larger was completed in Blithebeth. Most land plots in South Hampshire were purchased privately from the council, who gained immense profit from the transactions as there was rampant rising costs of land in Avenir, particularly in areas near Blithebeth. Land was sold slowly, however, as to prolong the effects of prices rising. Most housing was built in Kings Heath, Grave Town, and Friedrichsland, as land (and therefore the costs of living) were lower so properties were more inclined to be sold. Grave Town was established around the old graveyard of South Hampshire, which was established in 1732 as the mass grave for soldiers in the Great War of the Southern Dukedoms. World War I 14,000 men left South Hampshire to fight in 1914, mean age 20, of which 9,400 returned. South Hampshire's war production was considerably lower than other suburbs in South Avenir, merely beating out Calderon, Ponce, and Yags in terms of production. Interwar South Hampshire oversaw total architectural reform in the Interwar period, particularly from 1923-1929. Massive housing blocks existing in Emilsland were demolished at this time, mostly due to the sewer demolition in Blithebeth; these housing blocks became infested due to the bursting of sewage ventricles in Blithebeth, leading to contamination of open water supply. These blocks — which were built into open sewage supply — were deeply affected, and were blighted beyond repair. As such, a wide scale clearance occurred of the old Victorian properties and, in their place, Art Deco-style housing was built. While most of said housing was intended to be affordable, the immense prices of quartz-plated whitewashed sandstone and aluminium used in windows weighed up to be expensive, thereby increasing market value. Given their modernity and pricy nature, these buildings became popular among the wealthy, especially given the newly-repaired sewage system. World War II South Hampshire was bombed a total of 11 times from January 16—22, 1941. Most of these targeted industry in South Grand Marsh and Emisland, although Canalside — in particular its exclave bordering Blithebeth — suffered bad damage. Shelling was heavy around Bilksley Canal, which was impacted several times causing the canal to overflow. A small flood occurred on January 17. Crime South Hampshire is notable for its crime over other suburbs. Despite being almost uniformly crime-free (the third least of any suburb in Avenir), a major drug empire was uncovered in Beveridge Road in South Grand Marsh, which had produced roughly 15% of all drugs which had been confiscated between 1977-1989 in England and Wales, and was the largest drug manufacturer in Western Europe to have been uncovered. Specialising in illegal narcotics, the factory was located in a set of abandoned cloth factories, suffering from a Global Economic Shift which had reached its breaking point at this time. The factory was uncovered after an anonymous tipoff, and although no culprits were ever found, the business was believed to have had such dominion over Avenirian underworld they had informants within the 4 hours police were tipped off and their intervention, hence their seamless escape. Despite circumstantial evidence for police receiving and subsequently succumbing to bribes, no inquest was ever made into the whole ordeal leading to a number of conspiracy theories surrounding it. The legacy of drugs in South Hampshire continues — despite having almost zero violent crime in 2010, 11, 13, and 16, South Hampshire has the most drug abuse of any suburb in Avenir, with possession-related offences occurring weekly. Category:Avenir